Live Nation’s Ticketmaster now holds over 80% of the primary ticket sales market in major US venues|Live Nation Concerts|Facebook
The Justice Department is gearing up to sue Live Nation Entertainment, the parent company of Ticketmaster, on antitrust grounds, with plans to file the lawsuit as early as next month, reports the Wall Street Journal.
The potential legal action would allege that Live Nation exploited its dominant position in music concert promotion to undermine competition for ticketing live events.
Since the federal lawmakers allowed Live Nation and Ticketmaster to merge in 2010, lawmakers have accused the company on several occasions of high ticket fees and anticompetitive practices. Critics have also argued that the merger stifled competition.
The Justice Department has been looking into Live Nation since 2022, but the investigation gained momentum after the Taylor Swift Eras Tour debacle in November of the same year when the Ticketmaster platform crashed, making Swifties wait hours online and later canceled ticket sales.
Currently, Ticketmaster holds over 80% of the primary ticket sales market in the biggest venues in the country.